Robots and robotic systems are often used in manufacturing processes, such as in automotive and aerospace manufacturing. Such robots often perform tasks such as welding, painting, fastening, assembling, moving large loads, inspecting, and testing. In specific applications, robots may pick up a part, move the part toward an apparatus, position the part with respect to an apparatus, and/or couple the part to the apparatus. Such tasks performed by robots often require precision and/or accuracy, and the robot must be able to precisely align or locate itself and/or a tool with respect to the part and/or apparatus in order to ensure that it is able to perform its task. For example, in determinant assembly processes, alignment holes (sometimes referred to as determinant assembly holes, or “DA holes”) pre-formed in, for example, a flange of the part (e.g., a rib post for an airplane wing assembly) are aligned with holes formed in the apparatus, for example, the wing assembly, in order to position the part. Typically, a first robot, having a gripping mechanism may hold the part in position, while a second robot may fasten the flange of the part to the assembly. However, such parts are not always perfectly formed, and may have variances within acceptable tolerances. For example, rib posts may be formed having a flange oriented with respect to a spar within a tolerance of plus or minus 1.5 degrees. When held rigidly in place by the first robot's gripping mechanism, the part may be temporarily deformed into alignment with the assembly, but once the gripping mechanism is released, the part may spring away from the location in which it was held, thereby changing a relative location of the rib post away from a desired location. Thus, there exists a need for compliant end effectors and for methods of utilizing the compliant end effectors.